The Gentle Giant
by WindMillsOfOurMinds
Summary: I was alive one moment…and gone the next. I was a simple boy from one of the largest Districts in Panem. I loved a girl but she didn't love me back. She would come home and I would have to die. (Side Story for Beautiful Disaster. This is Mulberry's side of the story. Do not read unless You have read Beautiful Disaster.) Cato/OC.


**The Gentle Giant**

**Part 1**

_I was alive one moment…and gone the next. I was a simple boy from one of the largest Districts in Panem. I had a brother, and a mother, and a father. I had a home among the trees that was burnt to the ground after I was gone. I was a boy alive one moment and gone the next. _

My green eyes studied the tree tops around my home searching for the familiar shape of other people sitting somewhere up there. A part of me hoped that she would be there seeking comfort amongst the trees of District 7. Another part of me knew better, she was probably somewhere closer to her own cabin sitting higher than anyone else.

I chuckled pulling my knees closer to my chest. I would never climb one of those trees, anything higher that my own roof top was too high for me. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't get over my fear of heights. It was pretty sad for an apprentice lumberjack to be afraid to climb the trees he had to cut down. Father kept threatening that if I didn't get over this fear soon I would be the first Briscoe to end up as a carpenter.

"Did you stay up here all night?" A familiar voice called from the side of the roof top. Persimmon tried to pull himself up twice to get on the roof. He wasn't as strong as I was therefore not good enough to be a logger. He got the _privilege _of working closer to our father doing the numbers and I don't even know what it was that he did all day.

"Couldn't sleep." I mumbled keeping my eyes on the tree tops.

Persimmon nodded sitting with his legs stretched out in front of him. He kept of messing with his jacket pocket, pulling and putting his hand back into it. We didn't speak until the sun began to rise above the forest.

"I'm going to ask her…today after the reaping."

_I loved a girl and so did he, but she didn't love us back. In a way I was glad that she didn't. We had grown up together her and me. I watched after her when her father died, although I was sure she never knew about that. I never told her. My brother liked her too and that made me sad and angry at the same time. _

"Oh…" That was all I could manage to say.

"Mulberry," he reached out to touch my shoulder, "I'm pretty sure she'll say no. She doesn't like me, no one really likes me."

I shrugged looking down at my boots, "Maybe you should try and stop being so uptight for a change?"

He gave my shoulder a harsh shove causing me to laugh, "I'm serious."

"If you know she's going to say no then why ask her?" My older brother didn't answer; he just shook his head then ran a hand through his short hair. "What?"

He gave me a soft smile before standing up, "Come on or we'll be late." I watched him climb of the side of the house before I got up to follow him, "and take a bath, you stink!" he called making me laugh.

_Her name was called first out of all of the girls. I remember the pain that over took me when I watched her push Dafne away so that she could go up the stage next to our escort. Belanova called out my own name and I felt relief, I would be able to protect her like I always had. She would come home and I would have to die. _

After the reaping we were taken into separate rooms so that our friends and family could get to say goodbye. My mother and father came first; I couldn't really understand anything my mother was saying. She was crying too much and my father didn't say anything.

My father was never a man of many words he didn't really say goodbye. No, he just took me and my mother in his arms and held us there for three minutes.

Dafne came too with only one request that I bring her back home so that she could show her how to climb the highest tree in our district. I didn't hesitate to tell her that I would.

Persimmon came next, he looked sick almost as if he had thrown up recently or something. "Mulberry," he started keeping his eyes on the ground, "I'm sorry."

"It's alright; I wasn't expecting you to volunteer or anything." I joked taking a seat on one of the lush chairs, "Let me guess she said no," I knew it wasn't the best time to be laughing or joking but I couldn't help it. Something in me wanted to see my older brother suffer.

"Stop laughing." He finally looked at me.

I shook my head, "I guess the odds weren't on our favor this year, right Persi?"

"Stop laughing and don't call me that." He ordered.

That was when I noticed that his eyes were red, my serious brother had been crying recently. I sat there unsure of what to say or do to make him feel better.

"I n-need you to," he pulled something out of his pocket, "I need you to bring her home, keep her safe."

I placed my hands on the arm rest to try and stop them from shaking, "I will," I stood up wanting to, I don't know, hold him or something, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. "She's going to be okay, don't worry."

Persimmon nodded placing what he had been holding in my hand, "Be safe," he turned to leave but stopped before opening the door, "I'm sorry, Berry."

I stood there dumbfounded, what could he possibly be sorry for?

_It was hard for us to sleep during the train ride to the Capitol. We found comfort in each other's company during those long nights. We didn't speak much, not at first. We just watched the blur of trees outside the train's windows. Sometimes she would fall asleep, for a moment or too, she seemed so peaceful. The thought of this being one of my only few changes to see her like this sadden me. _

Johanna Manson had appointed herself as my mentor after she deemed my younger District Partner to be useless. I tried to defend her by telling Johanna that she was actually a good climber and that she had a great aim. I remember when she almost hit one of the bigger boys at school with a hatchet. I don't remember why she did it or what she did after that, all I know is that he stopped bothering her.

My mentor didn't care, "I have to help you not her, that's Blight's work."

I stayed quiet following her and the peacekeepers to where my stylist was waiting.

My clothes were made to match hers; I was stuffed into extremely tight brown pants that looked like tree bark and a green jacket that seemed to be covered in green leaves. They covered the sides of my face with twigs and more leaves. After I was dressed I was lead back to the stables where the chariots were waiting.

My stomach began to flutter when she showed up with her own prep team. She looked like a beautiful forest creature, like the ones in our childhood stories.

She was the first to talk commenting on how I looked like a tree. The fact that I was wearing pants and she wasn't made her give me a gentle shove. We stood side by side looking at the rest of the tributes.

She was interested in seeing the girl tribute from District 12, the one that had volunteered for her little sister. I pointed her out to her but she couldn't see over everyone's head. I was almost tempted to pick her up so that she could get a better look.

While her stylist, an impassive man named Rollo, made sure that her dress was in place I noticed _him._

_His eyes were the color of the winter sky, his eyes where that of a predator seeking out his next prey. I could tell by the way he was looking at her that he would be coming after her in the arena. I wouldn't let him hurt her; I wouldn't let him kill her. Even if it was the last thing I would do. _

I stayed close to her during training even thought we were strictly told not to get _attached_ to each other.

"If you become friends it will be harder for you to kill each other." Johanna warned over breakfast, "It will only make it harder in the end." We didn't listen to her, we never did. We only cared what Blight had to say, he was the nicer of the two the unrealistic dreamer or so Johanna called him.

We talked about different things in each station. It was hard to believe that we had to be in such a bad predicament to actually talk to each other. Back home I could never get myself to say anything to her and now there we were laughing even thought our days were counted.

She left my side only for a moment and he took his chance to approach.

I watched him closely leaving my work on the camouflage station forgotten. I was on my feet when he pulled her by the wrist bringing her closer to him. My blood began to boil when I saw the look of distress replace her usually calm demeanor.

"Cato!" One of the trainers called causing them to break their staring contest.

I wanted to punch the smug smirk off his face when he said, "See you around Seven." His eyes met mine briefly before he walked away.

After that I always kept my eyes on her just like I had back home when she would get picked on at school. Johanna wasn't too happy when she found out that we were spending our time in training together, this lead to long hour of discussion between Belanova and Johanna.

Belanova wanted us to create an alliance in order to get sponsors while Johanna only believed that she would bring me down. Blight just told us to keep our mouths shut and to go to bed.

We didn't though.

We stayed up staring out the windows looking at the city below us. I could tell that she was thinking about home, she always got a faraway look in her eyes when she did. I made the mistake of telling her that she would see the trees again. I told her that Persimmon and Dafne had both asked me to bring her home.

That was the first time I saw her cry.

_We trained separately after that. She avoided me at all cost; she left before me and came back later. Still I tried my best to keep an eye on the tribute from District 2. I watched her learn how to work with tomahawks and hatchets. Her aim was worse than I had remembered. Whenever she caught me looking at her I would quickly look away and go back to work. _

"I don't want you to keep me alive," Johanna stood from her seat, "I want her to go home."

My mentor walked over to the table covered in sweets. She picked a small pastry up before changing her mind and placing it back. "You have more changes of going back home than her," she explained, "she isn't good at much and what she is good at isn't good enough to get her sponsors."

"Her odds are 7-1, just like the girl from District 1 and the girl from District 5," I argued keeping my eyes on her, "She has more of a change than what you are giving her credit for!"

Johanna turned to face me, "Those odds can change rather quickly."

I made my way up to her trying to get my point across, "You're my mentor, you're supposed to help me-"

"I'm supposed to help _you_ go home alive!" She shouted standing tall.

"There's nothing for me to go back home too," Johanna groaned walking away. She didn't want to hear any more about my helpless cause, "She on the other hand-"

She punched me before I could finish what I had to say. I was taken by surprise by the force of her fist, I never imagined that a girl that small could hit so hard.

"I don't want to hear any more of this," she said walking away, "what are _you_ looking at?"

Blight smirked at her from his spot against the wall, "I don't know, but it looks pretty ugly to me."

"Shut up." She said making sure to bump her shoulder against his.

The older boy waited until Johanna's door slammed shut before he did anything. At first all he did was smile at me from his spot across the room.

His eyes were soft and full of pity, "You can't protect Laurel from everything, you know?"

"No but I can try."

Blight laughed softly while taking a seat across from me, "You love her, I can tell." I stood still keeping my mouth shut, I wanted to deny it but I couldn't find the right words, "I loved someone once, and just like you she came into the Arena with me."

His demeanor changed he was no longer smiling or laughing. There was a sadness about him, and he had been hiding it for a long time. I slowly sat back down waiting for him to go on.

"I didn't love her at first and when I realized that I did it was too late," Blight stared down at his feet for the longest time. He cleared his throat before meeting my gaze, "Let me give you some advice before you go into the Arena, don't fall in love with anyone."

We broke out into a soft laughter.

"I mean it, I really do," he mumbled scratching his freckled cheek, "love changes the games. It makes you sloppy. You'll do things that you know you shouldn't do to keep the ones you love safe. Love causes you to risk your own life for foolish reasons."

At that moment I realized that Blight had probably already given up on his own tribute. We weren't in the Arena yet and he already doubted her.

"Sometimes the foolish reasons are the ones worth risking our lives for." I left him with that before heading off to my own room.

_Blight spoke before I was even out of the room. He said that he was glad we both agreed on that. It took me a while to realize that he had been testing me. He wasn't giving up on her because she reminded him of his own "foolish reason." _

* * *

**End Notes:**

**I felt like I didn't do Mulberry any justice in Beautiful Disaster, so I decided to write a two part story in his point of view. **

**I dedicate this to x-Jacqueline-x, and mizuokami, who were kind enough to message me and give me some advice on my writing. **

**This is a two part story and I should be finish with it by Monday, review are welcome. **


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